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USS Becuna (SS-319)
Encyclopedia
USS Becuna (SS/AGSS-319), a Balao-class
Balao class submarine
The Balao class was a successful design of United States Navy submarine used during World War II, and with 122 units built, the largest class of submarines in the United States Navy. An improvement on the earlier Gato class, the boats had slight internal differences...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, is a former ship of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
named for the becuna, a pike-like fish of Europe.
World War II
Becuna (SS-319) was launched 30 January 1944 by Electric Boat Company, Groton, ConnecticutGroton, Connecticut
Groton is a town located on the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 39,907 at the 2000 census....
; sponsored by Mrs. George C. Crawford, wife of Commander Crawford, and commissioned 27 May 1944, Lieutenant Commander H. D. Sturr in command.
Becuna departed New London
Naval Submarine Base New London
Naval Submarine Base New London is the United States Navy's primary submarine base, the "Home of the Submarine Force", and "the Submarine Capital of the World".-History:...
1 July 1944 and arrived at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
29 July. Her war operations extended from 23 August 1944 to 27 July 1945. During this period she completed five war patrols in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
, and the Java Sea
Java Sea
The Java Sea is a large shallow sea on the Sunda Shelf. It was formed as sea levels rose at the end of the last ice age. The Java Sea lies between the Indonesian islands of Borneo to the north, Java to the south; Sumatra to the west, and Sulawesi to the east...
. Becuna is credited with having sunk two Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
s totaling 3,888 tons. For detailed accounts, see.
The submarine arrived at Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, from her last war patrol 27 July 1945. In September 1945 she arrived at San Diego, California.
Becuna received four battle stars for her World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
service.
Post-war service
After World War II Becuna continued to operate with Submarine Force, Pacific Fleet, until April 1949 when she was ordered to Submarine Force, Atlantic Fleet, as a unit of Submarine Squadron 8.Between May 1949 and May 1950 she conducted refresher training exercises and also assisted in training of student officers and men at New London, Connecticut
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
. In November 1950 she returned to Electric Boat Co., for a complete modernization overhaul, being refitted as a GUPPY-type submarine. The overhaul was completed in August 1951, and Becuna sailed to the Caribbean
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
for shakedown. She returned to New London in September 1951.
Becuna operated with the Atlantic Fleet, making two cruises with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and one to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. Other than these extended cruises, the majority of Becunas service was at New London as a training submarine.
In 1969, she was reclassified an Auxiliary Submarine, AGSS-319.
Museum ship
Becuna was decommissioned on 7 November 1969, and laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She reverted to SS-319 in 1971. She was struck from the Naval Register on 15 August 1973.Becuna was placed on permanent display at the Independence Seaport Museum
Independence Seaport Museum
The Independence Seaport Museum is a museum dedicated to the maritime history of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley. It is located in the Penn's Landing complex along the Delaware River in Philadelphia. The museum was founded in 1961 by J...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, 21 June 1976, where she has been part of the museum's Historic Ship Zone since 1996. She and the adjacent cruiser USS Olympia
USS Olympia (C-6)
USS Olympia is a protected cruiser which saw service in the United States Navy from her commissioning in 1895 until 1922. This vessel became famous as the flagship of Commodore George Dewey at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War in 1898. The ship was decommissioned after...
, Commodore George Dewey
George Dewey
George Dewey was an admiral of the United States Navy. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War...
's flagship, are open to the public for visitation.
She was designated a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1986. In 2001, Becuna received the Historical Welded Structure Award of the American Welding Society
American Welding Society
The American Welding Society is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the science, technology, and application of welding and allied joining and cutting processes, including brazing, soldering, and thermal spraying...
.